The iconic singer - who announced she would be wedding her long-term friend William Wilkerson earlier this month - has a number of designers in mind for her special gown, but is said to be particularly keen to have iconic dressmaker Vera do the task.

Her representative confirmed: "Ms. Franklin is considering Donna Karen, VALENTINO and the queen of wedding dresses, Vera Wang, to design her gown."

Aretha, who is 69, joked when she revealed her nuptials she was not doing it because she was pregnant.

She said in a statement: "We're looking at June or July for our date, and no, I'm not pregnant, LOL! (sic)"

This will be the third time Aretha has married - she wed former manager Ted White in the 1960s, and her second to Glynn Turman ended in 1984.